Wright paces Bobcats to 2-0 win over King

Oct 12, 2013

BRISTOL, Tenn. ---Jordan Wright (West Lothian, Scotland) scored twice in the second half, and Scott Alford (Hillsborough, N.C.) added two assists to lead the Lees-McRae College men's soccer team to a pivotal 2-0 win over King University in Conference Carolinas play on Saturday afternoon.

Lees-McRae (6-4-1, 4-1 CC) fought hard throughout the match, controlling possession for long stretches of the afternoon while outshooting King (1-8-1, 1-4 CC) by a 17-4 margin. The Bobcats would hold the Tornado to just two shots in each half, holding a 9-2 advantage in attempts on goal in the final 45 minutes.

Wright led the way for the Bobcats with his fifth and sixth goals of the season, converting each of his two attempts on frame. Alford added an assist on each of Wright's two strikes, as Yago Xavier (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) took a team-high four shots. Wright, Matthew Cureton (Waxhaw, N.C.) and Chris Mullins (Greensboro, N.C.) each made a trio of attempts toward goal.

Thomas Rusling (Sheffield, England) only faced one true test in the match, making one save to notch his sixth shutout of the campaign and 20th of his career, moving within one clean sheet of a tie for third on the program's all-time list. The senior netminder also tallied his first assist of the season on Wright's second of the match.

Kari Sveinsson made seven saves in the match for the Tornado, as Chris Hicks, Eli Carrasco, Luis Alonso, and Ryan Cobain each recorded a shot.

The match remained scoreless until the final moments of the 49th minute, when Wright flicked an Alford cross over the keeper and into the far corner to give the Bobcats a 1-0 advantage. The Bobcats would continue to push forward in search of a second, with Cureton testing Sveinsson twice in the span of 60 seconds before the Tornado keeper neatly parried a glorious chance by Alford in the 71st.

Wright then completed the double midway through the 75th minute, finishing his own rebound after Alford put him in behind with a flicked on long ball from Rusling. Cureton came within inches of a third in the closing moments, eliciting a skillful save from Sveinsson late in the 89th minute.

Lees-McRae returns to the pitch on Wednesday when the Bobcats host Erskine College in conference play at 7 p.m. on Tate Field.